All this whingeing about the process reminds me of Stalin's response when asked about the Pope's influence on some issue or the other: "The Pope!? How many divisions has he got?" (The Second World War (1948) by Winston Churchill vol. 1, ch. 8, p. 105.)

The Brownbackians, the people who donate to them and the people who vote for them don't give a fig about what you think the democratically ideal way of picking judges is. They care about getting power, then using it.

Did they trick Tacha and Six into making endorsements? Maybe, who cares?

If you want to fight back, work on voter registration and education. Otherwise, go f*** yourselves.

Let's face it -- Kobach's bill is aimed at poor people, and poor people don't vote. If they did, knuckleheads like Kobach and Brownback would never be elected again.

So, is there anything about this that will cause poor people to register, then vote? If someone tried to take my right to vote away from me, I'd be pissed, but will they be? Is there any way to use this story (and the resultant resounding victory for the ACLU in federal court, and the resultant fuss about the enormous legal fees the state will have to pay) to motivate them?

If recollection serves, there's only been three chiefs in the 60-year history of the Turnpike, Mr. Johnston, R.D. Fogo, and L.W. Newcomer. The KTA has been notable for its' lack of politicization and its' superior management. It has been run for the benefit of its' customers, rather than to serve some half-witted ideology. If only the State agencies had been managed so well, we wouldn't be having such terrible financial troubles now.

You should be ashamed of your comment. I suspect that you and Mr. Rhoades will be most remembered for your dearth of such an emotion.

"But Rep. Mark Hutton, R-Wichita, said the turnpike, completed 60 years ago, should be debt-free by now. He compared the turnpike to an adult who "still lives with Mom and Dad. It's time to kick Junior out of the house."

More like a couple of meth-head parents that want the successful child to move back in so they can share the wealth. "Yeah, Jimmy, after you move home we can have a joint checking account! We'll save money that way!!"

Actually, it was Huelskamp that got booted off the Ag Comm., but Pompeo is an embarrassment, also.

Pompeo got his start by creating a business that lived off government contracts, then went to work for some Wichita oil guy, then ran for Congress on Koch money and contacts. That's Koch Industries, the 2d largest privately owned company in the U.S. (world?) that doesn't pay taxes in KS because it meets the definition of a "small" business.

Who knows? Maybe his son (actually step-son) Nick can find some connection that can get him a good paying job at Koch, or maybe create his own business - that'd be even better because then he could, as a "small" businessperson, skip out on that dad-gum $54,000. Win!